Working for Families Calculator
Working for Families is money Inland Revenue pays to a principal caregiver for the cost of raising a dependent child. Enter the children, the family income, and whether the family has income from paid work. The estimate uses the rates for 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027.
Family Tax Credit
The family tax credit is the main Working for Families payment, and Inland Revenue sets it from the number of children and the family income. For 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027 the full amount is $7,921 for the eldest child and $6,454 for every other child. A family on $44,900 or less gets that full amount. Above $44,900, Inland Revenue works out one abatement: family income minus $44,900, multiplied by 27.5%. That abatement comes off the family tax credit first.
| Payment | Full amount | What reduces it |
|---|---|---|
| Family tax credit | $7,921 for the eldest child and $6,454 for each other child | 27.5% of family income over $44,900, taken off this credit first |
| In work tax credit | $7,670 for up to 3 children, plus $780 for each child after that | Any abatement left after the family tax credit is gone. Needs income from paid work. |
| Best Start | $4,041 for the year for each child under 3 | 21% of family income over $79,000, except a first year child born before 1 April 2026 |
| Minimum family tax credit | A top up to $36,604 after tax, which is $703 a week | Not in this calculator. It uses income after tax, and salary or wage hours. |
Inland Revenue pays the family tax credit and the in work tax credit from that one abatement, in that order. If the abatement is larger than the full family tax credit, the family tax credit is zero and the rest of the abatement comes off the in work tax credit. Best Start is a separate test. Weekly and fortnightly instalments are the full year divided by 52 or 26, rounded down to the nearest dollar. The chart in IR271 for this year shows the same full weekly amounts: $152 for the eldest child and $124 for each other child, which is the full year divided by 52 with the cents dropped.
Inland Revenue's Rahui Example
Inland Revenue's Rahui example uses family income of $100,000 and 3 children. The full family tax credit is $20,829. The abatement is $15,152.50. The family tax credit left is $5,676.50, paid as $109 a week after the instalment is rounded down. Choose a paid work tab, then enter 3 children and 100000. The family tax credit line follows that example. Sarah's example on the same page is family income of $37,800 and 2 children: the full family tax credit is $14,375, which is $276 a week, because the income is under $44,900.
In Work Tax Credit
The in work tax credit is the Working for Families payment for a family that has income from paid work. From 1 April 2026 the full amount is $7,670 for the year when there are 1, 2, or 3 children, plus $780 for every child after the first 3. Inland Revenue counts wages, self employed income, and income as a shareholder employee, including where the business or the company makes a loss. Interest, dividends, rent, or royalties on their own do not qualify, but they can sit beside paid work. A main benefit or a student allowance stops the credit. An unpaid break of 2 weeks or less can continue if you tell Inland Revenue.
The same 27.5% abatement hits the family tax credit first. Claire and Laura, on Inland Revenue's page, have family income of $100,000 and 2 children. Their family tax credit of $14,375 is wiped out by the abatement of $15,152.50. The leftover abatement is $777.50, so the in work tax credit is $7,670 minus $777.50, which is $6,892.50, or $132 a week. Choose In paid work, enter 2 children and 100000, and that is the in work line.
Jaimee's example is 5 children and family income of $41,600. The income is under $44,900, so there is no abatement. The in work tax credit is $7,670 plus $780 plus $780, which is $9,230, or $177 a week. Brooklyn's example is an unsupported child's benefit, so there is no family tax credit. Family income of $47,000 leaves an abatement of $577.50 on the in work tax credit: $7,670 minus $577.50 is $7,092.50, or $136 a week. Tick the no family tax credit box for that path. A foster care allowance, an orphan's benefit, or an unsupported child's benefit can still leave the in work tax credit in place when there is paid work.
Inland Revenue does not use an hours test for the in work tax credit. People still ask for 20 hours as a single parent or 30 hours as a couple because that was the old test, and it still appears in forum replies. Those hours now belong only to the minimum family tax credit, and only on a salary or wage. Choose No paid work when the only income is passive. Choose Benefit or allowance when a main benefit or a student allowance has started, even if there is also some work.
Best Start
Best Start is the Working for Families payment for a child's first 3 years. From 1 April 2026 Inland Revenue sets the full year at $4,041, which is $77 a week after the cents are dropped. A child born on or after 1 April 2026 is income tested from the start. A child born before 1 April 2026 gets the full amount in the first year, including the rise to $4,041 from 1 April 2026, and the income test starts in the second and third years. The test is separate from the 27.5% abatement: family income minus $79,000, multiplied by 21%. Paid parental leave and Best Start cannot be paid for the same child at the same time. Best Start starts after paid parental leave stops.
Inland Revenue's Faraj example uses family income of $83,500 for a child born on 1 June 2026. The abatement is $4,500 times 21%, which is $945. The entitlement is $4,041 minus $945, which is $3,096, or $59 a week, and it starts the day after paid parental leave finishes. Choose a paid work tab, enter 1 child, enter 1 child under 3, leave the born before 1 April 2026 box at 0, and enter 83500. The Best Start line follows that example. The printed example is one child. This estimate subtracts that same abatement from each income tested child. A first year child born before 1 April 2026 stays at the full $4,041. Your income type does not block Best Start: wages, self employed income, a main benefit, New Zealand Superannuation, and a student allowance can all be included in the family income.
Source: Inland Revenue family tax credit, in work tax credit, Best Start, and the weekly chart IR271 for 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027.
Minimum Family Tax Credit
The minimum family tax credit is a top up so a working family's income after tax reaches $36,604 for the year, which Inland Revenue also states as $703 a week. The number of children does not change it. It is paid only for weeks when the hours are worked for a salary or wage: at least 20 hours a week for a single parent, or at least 30 hours a week between the parents in a two parent family. Self employed income, partnership income, and a shareholder salary do not qualify on their own. A salary or wage on top of that income can still qualify if the hours are met and the income after tax stays under $36,604.
This calculator does not work out the minimum family tax credit. The other three credits use family income. This one uses income after tax, plus the salary or wage hours, and a small change can remove the whole credit. Inland Revenue's Jeremy example is a salary of $27,000 before tax and $1,000 of child support. Income after tax is $24,367. The credit is $36,604 minus $24,367, which is $12,237, or $235 a week. In the Casey example, going from under the limit to $37,280 after tax meant the credit for the year had to be paid back. Tell Inland Revenue in myIR as soon as the income or the hours change.
Source: Inland Revenue minimum family tax credit.
Family Income for the Year
Family income for these credits is the income of both partners for the year, not one person's taxable income on its own. For an employee with no other income, Inland Revenue's starting point for family scheme income is the salary or wages. govt.nz includes interest, dividends, and income from your children in the total it describes. Family scheme income can then add amounts that are not ordinary taxable income, so the figure on a payslip is not always the figure Inland Revenue uses. Enter the family income you expect them to use for the full year.
A shared care arrangement changes the entitlement. This estimate assumes each child you enter is in your care, and it does not split a child by days or weeks. A baby born during the year, or paid parental leave that covers only part of the year, is also a part year. The Best Start tick removes one child for the whole estimate while paid parental leave is still being paid. It removes an income tested child first. Use Inland Revenue's own estimate when the care or the dates change during the year. Wages that have had PAYE deducted are still part of family income, which is why a pay rise can lift PAYE and shrink Working for Families in the same year. The difference between the two is set out on the Working for Families and PAYE page.
Who Qualifies and Who Pays
Inland Revenue pays Working for Families to a principal caregiver. govt.nz says you need to be caring for at least one child under 18 who is financially dependent on you, you need to be over 16, and you need to be a New Zealand tax resident living in New Zealand, or the children in your care need to be New Zealand residents living in New Zealand. Work and Income pays the family tax credit and Best Start when you are already getting a benefit from them. Inland Revenue pays those credits when you are not. The in work tax credit stays with Inland Revenue, and it stops when a main benefit or a student allowance starts.
You cannot get the independent earner tax credit for a month in which you or your partner are entitled to and receive Working for Families. The same block applies to an income tested benefit, New Zealand Superannuation, a Veteran's Pension, or an overseas equivalent. The independent earner tax credit page covers that credit on its own. Work and Income also lists childcare subsidy, OSCAR, and the Accommodation Supplement as separate help. Those are not Working for Families tax credits, and this calculator does not estimate them. If you are not on a main benefit, the Ministry of Social Development checker points you to Inland Revenue for the tax credits. Apply or update a child in myIR.
Source: govt.nz Working for Families payments, Work and Income, the Ministry of Social Development checker, and Inland Revenue independent earner tax credit.
A Change During the Year
Weekly or fortnightly Working for Families payments are based on the income you estimate. govt.nz says those payments suit a family whose income stays steady and who is not expecting a new baby, a job change, or a child leaving home. A lump sum after 31 March suits income that jumps around. If the estimate is too low, Inland Revenue squares the year up after the tax assessment and you repay the extra. Late repayments can have penalties and interest. If you earned less than the estimate, the rest is paid after the assessment. A missing partner detail can also leave payments calculated as if you were single, which is a common reason for a later bill.
Self employed income counts as paid work for the in work tax credit even when the year shows a loss, but it still has to be in the family income you give Inland Revenue. A rough set aside for income tax does not replace that estimate. The self employed tax calculator is for the tax on that income, not for these credits. Update myIR when the income or the family changes, rather than waiting for the square up.
How to Read the Result
The result stays blank until you enter the number of children, enter the family income, and choose In paid work, No paid work, or Benefit or allowance. Placeholders are only a hint. They are not a calculation. The large figure is the weekly instalment: each credit's full year is divided by 52 and rounded down, then the three weekly amounts are added. The fortnightly line does the same with 26. The year line is the three credits added before that rounding, so it can show cents.
Children under 3 can be left blank, which the estimate treats as none. The first year box is only for children born before 1 April 2026 who are still in that first year. The paid parental leave tick removes one Best Start child for the whole estimate. The no family tax credit tick removes that credit for every child you entered and puts the abatement straight onto the in work tax credit. The minimum family tax credit, shared care, and a part year are not in the total. Inland Revenue's calculator and the end of year square up are the assessment. This page is a working estimate from the rates above.